My friends and clients who have young kids have been asking me what i do for my four year old daughter during cold season, and I've passed this info on to a lot of moms. When it comes down to it, after you take your child to the pediatrician for the first cold your child gets, you realize that there's very little you can do from an allopathic perspective until your child gets better. And if your child doesn't get better a round of antibiotics is usually the answer. So as a mom who doesn't have forever to watch her little girl move out of a miserable cold, and am saving the use of antibiotics for life and death situations, I'm pretty active in daily prevention. I think my daughter has bypassed a LOT Here's the basic list of things I do for my my gal holistically for prevention and maintenance during cold season. It doesn't always keep her from catching the cooties, but it strengthens her immune system naturally, so that she gets over it a lot FASTER, or it's much MILDER. CHINESE HERBS: I put drops of these herbal tinctures into soy milk to cover the herby taste (if you want these go to your acupuncturist, or you can order it directly from the Kan website set up prescribed by your acupuncturist. I use one to three of these tinctures together and play around with the dosages (1 drop to 10 drops). Remember that consistency is the key for acute attacks during the first three days. 1. WINDBREAKER- for COLDS AND PREVENION during cold season. PREVENTATIVE: When everything is going well and nothing is going around at school, I administer anywhere from 1 to 2 drops of Windbreaker a day. WHEN SOMETHING IS GOING AROUND: 3-4 drops a day. WHEN SHE HAS A COLD: I up the dosage to 5-10 drops 1-3 times a day: 2. CHEST RELIEF - for COLD THAT MOVE INTO THE CHEST WITH COUGH. 1-10 drops a day only if there is a phlegmy cough in a cold. 3. YIN QIAO JR - for SORE THROAT with Cold - put one whole dropperful straight into her mouth 2-3 times a day at initial onset! She’ll take it because it’s sweet. 4. XIAO CHAI HU TANG for EAR PAINS OR INFECTIONS - I haven't had to use this with my daughter but I keep it on hand. This is also good for colds that linger and reach deeper levels. (1-5 drops). 5. BI YAN PIAN - for RUNNY NOSE from colds (1-5 drops) 6. Fritallaria and Pinellia Cough Syrup – 1-2 spoonfuls for coughs. HOMEOPATHY FROM WHOLE FOODS: 1. Hyland's pediatric Kit - has many bottles in it as well as an instruction booklet for fevers, coughs, pains, etc. You can't go wrong. 2. Alpha C/F – 1 pill a day for preventative. 1 pill every hour for acute attacks of cold or respiratory flu. 3. Homeopathic Cough Syrups – 1-2 spoonfuls during coughs Beyond herbal therapy and prevention, the two most important things to keep in mind are a child's sleep schedule and the food they eat. Sleeping sufficiently and eating consciously will be the two strongest tools you have for strengthened immune systems. I keep my gal off dairy year round for so many reasons that I'm not going to list here. But if you're interested in why, check out the book: Disease Proof Your Child by Dr. Joel Fuhrman, MD. Stress is another thing to watch out for, because prolonged emotional stress can also weaken a little one’s immune system. This blog is about prevention and amelioration of colds. If you don’t see a difference for the better within a few days, then check your own mommy instincts and get it checked out by your pediatrician.
